Techniques and system to deploy policies intelligently

• US 8,185,548 B2
• Filed: 05/11/2010
• Issued: 05/22/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/29/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nextlabs
• Original Assignee: Nextlabs
• Inventors: Lim, Keng
• Primary Examiner(s): Wu, Yicun
• Application Number:
  US12/778,022
• Publication Number:
  US 20100223287A1
• Time in Patent Office: 742 Days
• Field of Search: 707/781, 709/200, 726/27
• US Class Current: 707/781
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6227 where protection concerns the structure of data, e.g. records, types, queries
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0631 using root cause analysis; using analysis of correlation between notifications, alarms or events based on decision criteria, e.g. hierarchy, tree or time analysis
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0893 Assignment of logical groups to network elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0894 Policy-based network configuration management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/101 Access control lists [ACL]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/20 for managing network security; network security policies in general filtering policies H04L63/0227
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/38 Graded-service arrangements, i.e. some subscribers prevented from establishing certain connections queuing arrangements H04Q3/64

Abstract

In an information management system, relevant policies are deployed to targets while policies which are not relevant are not. By deploying relevant policies, this reduces the amount of space requirements at the target to store the policies and the amount of data that needs to be sent to the target. Also, execution speed at the target may increase since the target does not need to evaluate policies that are not relevant.

Claims

1. A method executing on a processor of a computer, the method comprising:

providing a plurality of policies, wherein the policies are applicable to a plurality of target profiles, each target profile having a set of target attributes, and each policy comprises a conditional statement having a policy abstraction and a corresponding action that will be performed when the conditional statement is satisfied, and each policy abstraction has a corresponding definition statement stored separately from the policy;

analyzing a first policy to determine whether that policy is relevant to a specific target profile with a set of specific target attributes;

determining the first policy comprising a corresponding first conditional statement and a first action is relevant when a value of at least one of the specific target attributes is used during an evaluation of the first policy and allowing the first action to be performed at the first specific target;

after the first action is allowed to be performed at the first specific target, altering the first conditional statement and without transferring the first policy to the first specific target; and

after altering the first conditional statement at the server and without transferring the first policy to the first specific target, evaluating the first conditional statement which results in not allowing performing of the first action at the first specific target.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the at least one of the specific target attributes specifies a capability of a target having the specific target profile.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the at least one of the specific target attributes specifies a device type of a target having the specific target profile.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the at least one of the specific target attributes specifies a location of a target having the specific target profile.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the at least one of the specific target attributes specifies at least one user at a target having the specific target profile.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the at least one of the specific target attributes specifies at least one application program running at a target having the specific target profile.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the target attributes specify at least one of capability, device type or location, or user or application.

8. The method of claim 1 comprising:

when the policy is determined to be relevant, transferring the policy to a specific target having the specific target profile; and

when the policy is determined to not be relevant, not transferring the policy to the specific target having the specific target profile.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the at least one of the first specific target attributes is an application program.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the altering the first conditional statement and without transferring the first policy to the first specific target comprises adding an event to the first policy that will trigger an evaluation of the first conditional statement, wherein the event cannot occur at the first specific target.

11. The method of claim 10 further comprising after the adding an event to the first policy, transferring the first policy to the second specific target, wherein the event can occur at a second specific target.

12. A method comprising:

providing a plurality of policies stored at a server, wherein the policies are applicable to a plurality of target profiles, each target profile having a set of target attributes, wherein each policy comprises a conditional statement having a policy abstraction and a corresponding action that will be performed when the conditional statement is satisfied, and each policy abstraction has a corresponding definition statement stored separately from the policy;

analyzing a first policy of the plurality of policies to determine whether the first policy is relevant or irrelevant to a first specific target profile with a first set of specific target attributes;

determining the first policy is relevant to the first specific target profile and transferring the first policy to a first specific target with the first specific target profile and causing storing in a memory of the first specific target a first conditional statement having a first abstraction and a first action of the first policy;

at the first specific target, evaluating the first conditional statement which results in allowing performing of the first action at the first specific target, wherein the first conditional statement references the first policy abstraction;

after the first action is allowed to be performed at the first specific target by the stored first policy, altering the first policy abstraction at a first location, separate from the first specific target, and without retransferring the first policy to the first specific target; and

after altering the first policy abstraction at a first location, separate from the first specific target, and without retransferring the first policy to the first specific target, evaluating the first conditional statement which results in not allowing performing of the first action at the first specific target.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein the altering the first policy abstraction at a first location is removing a first item of a first type from the first policy abstraction, wherein the first policy abstraction contains a plurality of items of the first type.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein the first type represents users.

15. The method of claim 12 further comprising:

analyzing the first policy to determine whether the first policy is relevant or irrelevant to a second specific target profile with a second set of specific target attributes; and

determining the first policy is not relevant to the second specific target profile and not transferring the first policy to a second specific target with the second specific target profile.

16. The method of claim 13 wherein the first type represents applications installed at a specific target.

17. A method comprising:

providing a plurality of policies stored at a server, wherein the policies are applicable to a plurality of target profiles, each target profile having a set of target attributes, wherein each policy comprises a conditional statement having a policy abstraction and a corresponding action that will be performed when the conditional statement is satisfied, and each policy abstraction has a corresponding definition statement stored separately from the policy;

at the server, analyzing a first policy of the plurality of policies to determine whether the first policy is relevant or irrelevant to a first specific target profile with a first set of specific target attributes;

at the server, determining the first policy is relevant to the first specific target profile and transferring the first policy to a first specific target with the first specific target profile and causing storing in a memory of the first specific target a first conditional statement having a first abstraction and a first action of the first policy;

at the server, analyzing the first policy to determine whether the first policy is relevant or irrelevant to a second specific target profile with a second set of specific target attributes;

at the server, determining the first policy is not relevant to the second specific target profile and not transferring the first policy to a second specific target with the second specific target profile;

at the first specific target, evaluating the first conditional statement which results in denying performing of the first action at the first specific target;

after the first action is allowed to be performed at the first specific target by the stored first policy, altering the first conditional statement at the server and without retransferring the first policy to the first specific target; and

after altering the first conditional statement at the server and without retransferring the first policy to the first specific target, evaluating the first conditional statement which results in allowing performing of the first action at the first specific target.

18. The method of claim 17 further comprising:

permitting the second specific target to be disconnected from the server and then subsequently permitting the second specific target to be reconnected to the server;

after the permitting the second specific target to be reconnected to the server, reanalyzing the first policy to determine whether the first policy is relevant or irrelevant to the second specific target profile; and

after the reanalyzing the first policy, transferring the first policy to the second specific target with the second specific target profile.

19. The method of claim 18 comprising after transferring the first policy to the second specific target with the second specific target profile, disconnecting the second specific target from the server;

and

after the disconnecting the second specific target from the server, evaluating the first policy at the second specific target.

20. The method of claim 17 wherein the altering the first conditional statement at the server and without retransferring the first policy to the first specific target comprises adding an event to the first policy that will trigger an evaluation of the first conditional statement, wherein the event cannot occur at the first specific target.